A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for preserving freshness, and more particularly, the present invention relates to a device for preserving freshness of contents of a container.
B. Description of the Prior Art
Presently, when a can of coffee is newly opened, the coffee producer provides the consumer with a removable plastic outer cover or lid for the can. This removable plastic outer cover is intended to replace the permanent original metal cover that was removed to gain access to the new coffee grounds. The purpose of the removable plastic outer cover is to attempt to keep the unused coffee grounds fresh while in the can. Some producers now provide coffee cans with a peel-back type of seal to replace the original metal cover. This peel-back seal is to ostensibly re-seal the can of unused coffee grounds.
Once opened and exposed to the outside air, however, the coffee grounds in the can begin to lose their freshness. Moreover, the removable plastic outer cover does not necessarily provide an airtight seal as does the original metal cover nor does the peel back seal when it is re-sealed. Further, the more coffee grounds that are eventually used, the lower the level of the grounds inside the can become. This results in ever more outside air entering the can. Again, this is regardless of the plastic removable outer cover or the peel back seal. The constant addition and continuing presence of air in the can over periods of days, weeks, months, or longer causes the unused coffee grounds to lose more and more of their freshness resulting in reduced flavor and taste.
Thus, there exists a need for a device for maintaining freshness of coffee in a previously opened can. Numerous innovations for freshness packaging have been provided in the prior art that will be discussed below. Even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, they differ from the present invention. For example:
(1) U.S. Pat. No. 3,578,467 to Huber.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,578,467 issued to Huber on May 11, 1971 teaches a coffee container apparatus including an open top can receiving a plunger type cover that closely fits the wall of the can and is insertable downwardly there into to force the air there out and come to rest on the top of the coffee and hermetically seal air from contact therewith whereby the coffee aroma will be maintained. The cover may include an upwardly and outwardly flared, resilient, peripheral lip that deforms to conform to the can wall configuration for assuring positive hermetic sealing.
(2) U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,116 to Hamell et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,116 issued to Hamell et al. on Jul. 5, 1977 teaches rigid containers, such as metal cans, for use in hermetically packaging roasted coffee products that are coated internally with an aroma solvent—e.g. glycerides, waxes, silicones, etc.—that is effective to dissolve and partition a broad range of aromatics. This effects an aroma partition between the head-space in the sealed, coffee-containing can and the coating that retards staling and/or oxidation of the coffee aroma within the sealed can. The pick-up of aroma by the coating may also increase the amount of aroma retention within the opened container during an extended in-use period.
(3) U.S. Pat. No. 4,394,919 to von Alven et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,394,919 issued to von Alven et al. on Jul. 26, 1983 teaches a closure for containers, which is readily removeable in whole or in part to gain access to contents in the container. The closure includes a generally flat cap member sealed at its periphery to the mouth of the container. An upstanding tubular member on the surface of the cap is partially surrounded by a score line in the cap, and the score line preferably continues all around the cap near its periphery. The tubular member preferably has rigidifying apparatus in its closed top and side walls, which can be readily flexed inwardly so that the tubular member can be firmly grasped and pulled to readily initiate a rupture in the score line at a stress-concentrating focal point on that portion of the score line adjacent the tubular member. The cap can then be easily removed by continued pulling of the tubular member.
(4) United States Patent Application Publication Number US 2003/0010787 A1 to Dalton et al.
United States Patent Application Publication Number US 2003/0010787 A1 published to Dalton et al. on Jan. 16, 2003 teaches a fresh packaging system for roast and ground coffee having a top load capacity of at least about 16 pounds or 7.3 Kg and which includes a container with a closed bottom, an open top, and a body enclosing a perimeter between the bottom and the top. A protuberance is continuously disposed around the perimeter of the body proximate to the toe) and forms a ridge external to the body. A flexible closure is removeably attached and sealed to the protuberance so that the closure seals the interior volume of the container. The container bottom and container body are constructed from a material having a tensile modulus number ranging from at least about 35,000 to at least about 650,000 pounds per square inch or at least about 2,381 to at least about 44, 230 atm.
(5) U.S. Pat. No. 6,510,981 to Deering et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,510,981 issued to Deering et al. on Jan. 28, 2003 teaches a canister for containing a particulate-type product, such as a ready-to-eat cereal. The canister includes a side wall, a bottom closure, and a plastic lid. The side wall defines at least a portion of a tubular body having an upper opening, a lower opening, and an internal storage region for containing the particulate-type product. The side wall includes a first paper-based layer and a second plastic-based layer. The first paper-based layer has an inner surface and an outer surface. The second plastic-based layer is bonded to the inner surface of the first paper-based layer. The bottom closure is connected to the side wall so as to encompass the bottom opening. The plastic lid is openably secured to the tubular body at the upper opening. The plastic lid provides selective access to the internal storage region.
(6) U.S. Pat. No. 6,514,552 to Sivetz.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,514,552 issued to Sivetz on Feb. 4, 2003 teaches a method for keeping roasted coffee beans fresh. Roasted coffee bean freshness is maintained by storing just roasted beans in a sealed container having much less than 1.0% oxygen therein. Storage of roasted coffee at very low temperatures—less than −40 degrees F. or −40 degrees C.—also preserves the freshness of the coffee. The combination of low oxygen and low temperature storage provides the freshly roasted coffee taste and a long shelf life for that preserved taste.
It is apparent that numerous innovations for freshness packaging have been provided in the prior art that are adapted to be used. Furthermore, even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, they would not be suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described.